The Knight Bus
## Knight Bus
Wade finished all his homework during the first week of summer vacation.
It was easy for him; he had all the necessary knowledge in his head. He barely even needed to open a book to complete most of his essays.
On the morning of the eighth day, Professor Morrie's son, Steven, appeared at the door.
Since there were no pedestrians on the road at that hour, he had Apparated directly to the vicinity instead of coming through the fireplace at Wade's house.
Early in the morning, a sudden knock came at the door. Ferdinand opened it to see a tall man standing outside.
"Hello, Mr. Gray. I'm Steven Morrie—is Wade in?"
The tall man offered a cheerful smile.
"Y-yes, of course... Please, come in."
Ferdinand stepped aside from the doorway, a hint of confusion in his eyes.
Most of the Wizards he had met didn't wear Muggle clothes, but the man in front of him was dressed very appropriately.
Steven Morrie—Ferdinand had heard Wade mention him before.
For some reason, he had always pictured him as a chubby boy, but in person, he looked like a basketball player.
"Hi, Steven, long time no see."
Wade came down from upstairs, raising a hand in greeting.
"Wade, I'm here to pick you up for Cyathea Manor."
Steven's smile immediately spread to the corners of his eyes. He said, "I assume you're ready?"
"Of course."
Wade picked up his Pencil Case from the cabinet and tucked it into his pocket. After saying goodbye to his parents, the two of them left House Gray together.
The cool morning light spilled onto the street, where most windows were still dark. A thin mist blurred the distant streetscape.
"How are we getting there?" Wade asked.
"Before I left, my father told me not to Apparate with you, to avoid any danger."
Steven raised his Wand. "So there's only one option—the Knight Bus."
With a loud *BANG*, a triple-decker bus seemed to squeeze out of thin air, its headlights emitting a dazzling glare.
"Won't such a loud noise wake the Muggles?" Wade asked, startled and exasperated.
"No. The bus has a Shielding Charm on it, so Muggles generally can't hear or see it," Steven said.
"...Generally?"
"Haha... you really are sharp."
Steven couldn't help but laugh. "Occasionally, some Muggles do notice the bus, but they usually think they're seeing things."
"Welcome to the Knight Bus, just stick out your Wand and step aboard, and we can take you anywhere you want to go. My name is Stan Shunpike, and I'll be your conductor tonight—"
A lanky young man leaned half his body out of the bus door. After rattling off a long introductory speech, he finally seemed to notice the two people waiting by the roadside.
"Please, gentlemen, step aboard. What are you waiting for?" Shunpike said enthusiastically.
"Waiting for you to give me a chance to speak... Eleven Silver Sickles each, right?"
Steven led Wade onto the bus, handing Shunpike a Galleon and a few Silver Sickles.
"Fancy some chocolate, sirs? Only two more Silver Sickles a bar!"
Shunpike asked loudly, pulling the door shut with a strong tug.
"No, thank you. To Cyathea Manor," Steven said.
"Right away, sir!" Shunpike responded loudly.
Wade looked around the interior of the bus. There were several beds with brass posts, and the windows next to them were all curtained. Candles on shelves by the beds provided a dim light inside the vehicle.
Only one bed had a passenger.
That person wore an old nightcap and was completely covered by the blankets, emitting only steady snores. The conductor's loud voice seemed to have no effect on him at all.
"Lie down, Wade."
Steven chose a bed and lay down, warning, "This bus can be quite wild."
Wade took his advice.
Shunpike raised an eyebrow. "Speed is a man's romance!"
"Thanks, but I prefer my romance a little gentler," Steven quipped.
No sooner had he spoken than the entire bus bounced like a frog, suddenly rocketing far ahead. Wade nearly rolled off the bed.
He immediately pulled out his Wand and cast a temporary Sticking Charm on his clothes, finally preventing himself from being tossed around by the bus's subsequent bumpy ride.
"Whoa, student—you're violating Ministry of Magic regulations!"
Shunpike said, then chuckled to himself.
Steven asked, "Are you going to report us to the Ministry of Magic?"
"Of course not!"
Stan Shunpike pinched his mouth and said in a strange voice, "My mouth is as reliable as if it's been hit with a permanent Sticking Charm!"
The driver in the front seat also said, "Sir, we have professional ethics—Shunpike, don't joke around."
"Got it, Ernie!" Shunpike raised a hand and saluted his forehead.
Although the Knight Bus drove wildly, it was incredibly fast, and it wasn't long before they arrived outside Cyathea Manor.
Steven and Wade got out of the bus together. The iron gate of the manor silently slid open, then automatically closed after they entered.
Compared to ordinary Muggle manors, a Wizard's manor was incredibly quiet. To maintain a manor of this size, Muggles would need at least fifty or sixty servants.
But Wizards didn't need that.
House-elves could handle all the complex tasks.
"Actually, I'd rather invite you to my farm—Cyathea Manor is a bit too quiet."
Steven said, "But my father said he wants to give you a few days of Alchemy lessons first."
Wade asked, "Don't you need to go to Mr. Scamander's?"
"Mr. Scamander gave me two weeks of summer vacation."
Steven happily said, "After your lessons, we'll go to the farm for two days. After the vacation, we'll go to Dorset—Mr. Scamander said he'd be delighted for you to visit."
Wade was also looking forward to it.
...
According to Steven, there were over a dozen House-elves serving at Cyathea Manor, but Wade never saw a single one.
The food here was also much more varied than what was served in the Hogwarts Great Hall.
Although the long tables in the school's Great Hall were always piled high, it was usually just large plates of roasted potatoes, fried steak, roast chicken, and cake. While it wasn't exactly meager, eating school food too often always became tiresome.
Cyathea Manor was different.
When Professor Morrie was young, he traveled all over the world, and even now he often went to other countries for conferences, to exchange Alchemy products, or even to attend Muggle product launches while disguised.
Because of this, he brought cuisines from various countries to Cyathea Manor—Peking duck, Brazilian barbecue, Singaporean chili crab, Spanish ham, Mexican burritos...
The menu alone was a two-inch thick book.
And you could also order à la carte.
You just had to pick what you wanted to eat in advance, and within half an hour, a House-elf would silently deliver it to your table.
At noon, Professor Morrie returned from outside. He didn't waste any time on pleasantries and immediately started teaching Wade.
"You've already mastered the basics of Alchemy," Professor Morrie said directly. "This summer, we'll learn something special—Bio-Alchemy."
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